ICICI Lombard receive GST Show Cause Notice of Rs.288 Crore

ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company Ltd has received a GST Show Cause Notice of Rs.288 crore for financial year 2020 from the GST Officer of the Department of Trade and Taxes.

According to the insurance company, the notice wants clarity on an alleged GST liability from April 2019 to March 2020.

The notice, sent on May 22, 2024 under Section 73(1) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, requires the corporation to offer clarifications on an alleged GST due for financial year 2019-2020. The show cause notice contains a demand for Rs.1,49,55,43,768, interest of Rs.1,24,34,72,940, and a penalty of Rs.14,95,54,377.

The show cause notice (SCN) asks tax payment and clarification of the following points:

1. The Company’s entitlement to Input Tax Credit and its related reconciliation with the numerous parameters listed in the SCN.

2. Reconcile the discrepancy between values stated in monthly returns and the matching annual return.

In response to the notice, ICICI Lombard has reaffirmed its commitment to cooperating with the authorities by filing an appropriate response within the timeframe specified. In addition, ICICI Lombard has indicated that it is willing to pursue alternative legal options in response to the show cause notice.

ICICI Lombard recently made headlines when Bharti Enterprises sold 38.5 lakh shares of the insurance business for an average price of Rs.1,722.5 per share, totalling Rs.663 crore. ICICI Lombard General Insurance reported a net profit of Rs.519 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2024, up 19% from Rs.436 crore the previous year.

At the end of May 23, the scrip ended at Rs.1,663.75 per share on the BSE, up 0.98 percent (or Rs 16.20) over the previous day’s closing.